Will Netflix Renew Bodyguard for Season 2?

Posted by Jamie on March 25, 2019

Bodyguard was a huge hit for the BBC and went down a storm on Netflix. Aired on the BBC in August 2018 and then October 2018 on Netflix, the series featuring John Madden and Keeley Hawes was the biggest TV release of the who year in Britain and went down exceptionally well here in the US too. So will there be another season? If there is, will Netflix renew Bodyguard for season 2?

The Bodyguard followed policeman David Budd as he protected the British Prime Minister played by Keeley Hawes. It had twists, turns, intrigue, romance and all the ingredients necessary for an excellent watch. While things don’t go Budd’s way, the storyline is handled in such as way that we aren’t left disappointed or feeling let down.

The original series was intended to be a one off. Showrunner Jed Mercurio, who also wrote Line of Duty, another fantastic Brit cop show, said that Bodyguard was a one off series of six episodes that was designed to stand on its own merits and go nowhere else.

After taking over 40% of the British TV audience on its launch night, which is a record for the BBC, those plans seem to have changed. The iPlayer stats are equally impressive, with over 3 million requests, which is another record for the BBC. Surprisingly, the main demographic who watched Bodyguard online were 16-34.

While created by the BBC, Netflix was involved with the production of the series from the outset which perfectly placed it to take advantage of distribution rights.

Bodyguard season 1

Bodyguard was six hour-long episodes that followed David Budd as a Specialist Protection Officer in the British police. He was tasked with protecting the British Prime minister during a turbulent time in her political career and during death threats, internal machinations and conspiracies.

As well as the Prime Minister’s troubles, ex-solider Budd had his own demons he was fighting. Only made worse when one conspirator against the Prime Minister was an ex solider buddy of his who he had to shoot dead.

Budd was played by John Madden who you may know from another minor TV show called Game of Thrones where he played Robb Stark. He plays Budd well. Serious, diligent yet haunted and with a soft spot for his principal played by actress Keeley Hawes.

That’s about as much as I can say without spoilers. If you’re a fan of Brit TV and like a good drama that leaves you wanting more but in a good way, Bodyguard delivers on every count.

Will there be another season of Bodyguard?

As mentioned above, the first season was supposed to be a one off. The script was written in such a way that everything was tied up neatly and rounded out the story. The Brits write differently than we do and tend to avoid those annoying and often cheesy open-ended stories just in case they get green lit for another season.

So almost all of the threads of the original are tied. Not all of them though. There are a couple of ways a new story could be made following on from the original without appearing contrived or using ‘TV history’ to rewrite what went before.

The showrunner Mercurio’s other hit, Line of Duty is several series into its life right now and has stayed strong throughout. There is every reason to think he could write more for Bodyguard too.

At the time of writing, no confirmation has yet been made that a season 2 of Bodyguard is coming. But, a quote from Mercurio sets our mind at rest. He said:

‘It’s probably fair to say we would probably approach any thoughts of a second series with the idea that it would create an opportunity for a third or fourth,’ he said. ‘We do feel very privileged and fortunate that there’s been such a response that it gives us that opportunity to at least think about doing more.’

Given the success of season 1, I personally think it inevitable that there will be more. Now filming for Game of Thrones is over and done with, Madden is at something of a loose end too so there is no excuse!

Will Netflix renew Bodyguard season 2

If the BBC goes with more seasons of Bodyguard, you can bet Netflix will renew their distribution rights for it. The show aired on Netflix a couple of months after it aired in the UK and it proved very popular. Labeled as a Netflix Original, the show did very well on the platform and it isn’t difficult to believe that a season 2 would do the same.